


Into The Wild

by RhysMerilot



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-12
Updated: 2015-07-12
Packaged: 2018-04-08 23:27:14
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 14,088
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4324878
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RhysMerilot/pseuds/RhysMerilot
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Henry convinces his mothers to take him camping. Regina only agrees to keep an eye on her son and keep him from being involved in Emma’s quirky antics. The last thing she expected was for that pesky raccoon to destroy her tent AND pop her brand new air mattress…Written for SwanQueen Week, day one: Bed Sharing</p>
            </blockquote>





	Into The Wild

_"Come on, Mom, it'll be fun!"_

Fun. Regina had rolled her eyes at the insistent pleas for her to join her sixteen-year-old son and his other mother on a camping trip that they'd been planning for weeks on end. Fun was sitting in her study with a glass of her vintage merlot and listening to soft jazz records while kicking off her heels and relaxing. Fun was sleeping in her soft bed and not on an air mattress in a tent. Fun was having running water and electricity, because being without was something Regina couldn't fathom. Fun was _not_ the hijinks Emma and their son continuously got into together when they went on trips like this alone. Fun was _not_ the broken wrist he had come home with the last time he and his blonde-haired mother went on a camping trip out in the woods alone.

Yet, despite her obvious distaste for camping in the woods, for many other reasons on top of the reasons she already had, she had given in to the pleas of her son. The older that Henry got, the more trouble he and Emma found themselves getting into, which was one of the main reasons she had agreed to go in the first place, just to keep an eye on them both so they didn't end up maimed or killed because of some stupid idea his other mother got into her head.

The camping trip was only going to be for the weekend, and when that Friday started to creep up on them, Henry's excitement became hard for him to contain. He packed a week ahead of time and bugged Regina constantly about packing up a bag for herself and even gave her a list of other supplies she would need. She left it until Friday morning while Henry was at his summer job working with Marco out of his garage and packed what she thought she'd need and completely ignored the list that Henry had written up for her.

If Henry was excited beyond control, Emma was even worse. Regina found it absolutely ridiculous, especially considering she was a grown woman in her mid-thirties and she was getting excited about spending the weekend out in the woods like they were some kind of savages who didn't need the comforts of home. Emma's excitement showed immensely and it annoyed Regina to no end. She showed up at the mayor's office every afternoon, telling her of the things she'd picked up for their camping trip and talking endlessly of the plans she had for the three of them while they were out there in the woods.

By the time Regina left her office, she was tired and only wanted to go home, kick off her shoes and enjoy a glass of her vintage merlot, but that wasn't happening because the very moment she stepped out of the town hall with her car keys in her hand, she saw Emma Swan standing beside the brown truck, everything already packed up and ready to go.

"What are you doing here?" Regina asked, ignoring the way Emma bounced on her heels and followed her to her car. "I thought that we agreed we would meet at the house at six?"

"I know what we agreed," Emma replied with a roll of her eyes. "But Henry couldn't wait and I thought I'd come by and let you know we're driving out to the site now."

"Hmm," Regina nodded and unlocked her car. "I need to change."

"I know. Go home and change. Here," Emma said and she held out a piece of paper with a poorly drawn map on it. "Just so you know how to get there."

"I know how to get there, Swan," she snapped and she took the paper with the map on it and folded it neatly. "I'll see you two in an hour and please try to keep yourselves out of trouble in the meantime."

Regina watched Emma run over to her father's truck, borrowed for the camping trip and she got into the cab, high fiving Henry before she drove off. Regina laughed quietly and shook her head. Sometimes, it didn't take much for the blonde to get excited, especially after everything they had been through over the years.

Despite her obvious distaste for the planned trip, she had to admit that maybe she was looking forward to getting away for a couple of days. It would be good, not just to get away, but to spend time just the three of them without the two Charming idiots around to annoy her to no end.

[X]

Emma pulled the truck just off the dirt road and into the small clearing in the woods, coming to a stop heavily as her foot slammed on the brakes. Henry groaned next to her and shook his head before they both got out of the truck.

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Henry asked as he looked around the clearing. "We're about ten minutes past the town line, Ma."

"That's the whole point," Emma replied and she started to unload their gear from the bed of the truck, piling it up on the ground. "Your mom needs to get away for a weekend and she needs to relax. She can't relax if she can use her magic now, can she?"

"No, but—"

"Trust me, kid, it'll be fine."

"Yeah, until she rips you a new one when she finds out we're not camping inside of Storybrooke like we told her we were."

"I gave her the map."

"It was a pretty crappy map, Ma," Henry laughed as he carried his own tent over towards the tree line. "You know as soon as she figures it out, she's going to be mad. Really mad."

Emma shrugged and she knew he had a point, but she didn't care because she'd been so excited about this trip for weeks when she got the genius idea that this would be it, that she would use this trip to finally— _somehow_ —make the first move on Regina since she figured out that she had fallen in love with her. She had a whole bunch of ideas, none of which made any sense yet, but she'd figure it out once Regina was there.

"Where are we setting up her tent?" Henry called out. "Ma?"

"Where do you think?"

Henry shrugged and wiped at his already sweaty brow. "Somewhere in the shade?" He suggested. "And preferably away from mine. Don't think I don't know what you're planning, Ma."

"I'm not planning anything," Emma replied as innocently as she could manage and with the raised eyebrow Henry gave her, they both burst out into wild, uncontrollable laughter. "Hey, this was partly your idea too, kid, so don't start."

Henry knew. Henry knew probably long before Emma figured it out for herself that her feelings for his other mother went beyond the friendship they had forged over the years. Henry had told her just to tell her, but Emma knew it wouldn't be that easy. Nothing was ever easy when it came to Regina Mills.

They spent close to an hour setting up the three tents and blowing up the air mattresses. They were in the middle of collecting firewood when Emma's cell began to ring. She pulled it out of her back pocket and swallowed thickly when she saw Regina's name on the screen and she declined the call and jogged up the narrow path to catch up to Henry.

"Did she call already?" Henry asked and Emma nodded, placing a hand on his shoulder. "You're in so much shit, Ma."

"Don't remind me."

[X]

Regina came to a stop as she approached the town line, the line itself having faded over the years but was still there nonetheless. She grumbled under her breath and unfolded the poorly drawn map Emma had given to her outside the town hall. She cursed at herself for not realizing that this planned camping trip was being taken place outside of Storybrooke and she knew she should've paid a little more attention when Emma and Henry were planning on where they were going to go for this little getaway.

Regina tossed the paper onto the passenger seat and pulled her phone out of her purse. She was angry as she scrolled through her contacts list and called Emma's phone, her anger only intensifying when the call went through to voicemail a minute later.

"Damn it, Emma," she muttered and placed her phone on her lap and took a deep breath. "It'll be fun, he said," she sighed and knew that if she backed out now, Henry would never forgive her, especially not since she promised him she'd come with them this weekend.

Crossing the town line always felt a little strange because she could feel the magic in her body become dormant. While it was a strange feeling, it wasn't painful, but it just served to her a reminder that she was utterly helpless without the use of her magic readily at hand. She hit the gas and closed her eyes as the car crossed the line and she didn't slow down until she passed the mile marker that was circled on the poorly drawn map. She made the turn down the dirt road on the left and clenched her jaw as her car bumped along.

Her anger intensified as she came to a stop near where Emma had parked her father's truck and she couldn't see either of them in the small clearing they'd chosen as their campsite for the weekend. She shut off the car and climbed out, grabbing her purse as she did. Her heels sank into the soft grass and she glanced down in disgust as she lifted her foot and found her left heel covered in mud.

While heels weren't obviously proper shoes for camping, she didn't have anything else to wear and she had chosen a sensible pair, ones that were comfortable and practical enough. She walked towards the empty fire pit and took a look around. Three tents had already been set up, one off to the far side and the other two set up five feet away from the other. She recognized one of the two as her own, seeing how Henry had her pick it out from the catalogue weeks before when he picked his so Emma could pick them up from the store for them.

She shook her head and walked back to her car to retrieve her bag she'd packed for the weekend. After she placed it in her tent, she pulled out her phone and called Emma again and just faintly she could hear her ridiculous ringtone just off in the distance. With a huff, she tucked her purse under her left arm and started off towards the sound of Emma's ring tone, ending the call and calling her right back again.

Regina angrily hit the end button when she saw Emma and Henry just up ahead, arms filled with branches they were collecting. She shook her head and tapped her foot against the ground, staring angrily at Emma until she finally noticed her standing there.

"Regina, hey," Emma smiled. "Did you just get here?"

"Yes."

"I thought you were going home to change?"

"I did," Regina sighed and she glanced down at the slacks she'd changed into, ones she considered too casual for work. "I've been calling."

"Kind of got my hands full here," Emma replied and she looked back at Henry, nearly dropping some of the branches as she did. "Hey, why don't we head back and drop this load off and go find some bigger ones?"

"Emma, can I speak with you for a moment?"

"Can it wait, Regina?" Emma asked as she walked briskly past her. "I'm kind of in the middle of something right now and you want to have a fire tonight, right? We'll need wood for that. It's not going to appear out of thin air."

"No, of course not because someone decided that a trip _outside_ of Storybrooke was a good idea!" Regina snapped angrily. "What were you thinking? Was this your idea?"

"It was mine too, Mom," Henry interrupted. "We thought it'd be nice for you both to get away from magic for a little while."

Regina rolled her eyes and followed her son and his other mother back to the campsite. It'll be fun, he had said, but Regina wasn't finding any of this fun at all.

[X]

Emma knew she was angry, she could see it in her eyes the moment she looked at her. Henry warned her that his mother would be angry, for a whole host of reasons and he was right. Knowing that Regina was angry made her nervous. It had been a long time since they had gotten into it with each other and while they bickered most days about petty things, Regina never had that fiery look in her eyes as she did in that moment.

So far her genius plan was already beginning to fall apart and Regina had only just gotten there. She sighed loudly as she dropped the pile of branches a few feet away from the fire pit and wiped the dirt from her hands on her jeans.

"We're going to need a lot more wood," Henry said to her and she nodded. They would need more, at least just enough for that night. They could get more the next day. "I'll be back."

"Henry!" Emma groaned as he ran off, leaving her there alone with a fuming Regina standing a few feet away.

"Emma," Regina said tightly, her purse tucked under her arm while the other held on to it until her knuckles turned white. "What were you thinking coming out this far? How can this possibly be safe for any of us?"

"Safe?" Emma scrunched her face in confusion. "Regina, we're going to be fine. There is nothing out here than can harm us, maybe aside from some raccoons or something," she shrugged and upon Regina's incredulous look, she held her hands up in front of her. "Which there won't be any because we're going to keep the food in your car."

"Not the brightest of ideas, dear," Regina replied with a sigh. "Aside from raccoons to worry about, there are also other disasters that could happen."

Emma raised an eyebrow at her. "Disasters? Really? We're only camping. What could possibly go wrong? I mean aside from the fact that you're dressed for a day in the office not a weekend out in the woods."

Regina glanced down at her outfit and sighed loudly. "I had nothing else."

"What?" Emma asked. She was teasing her because teasing Regina had become one of her favourite past times. "What did you say?"

"I said I had nothing else!" Regina snapped. "You were right."

"I was what?"

Regina rolled her eyes. "I said you were right! I should've gone shopping before."

Emma laughed and shook her head, jogging over to the truck and she pulled out a small bag from the back and tossed it towards Regina. It landed just half a foot from where she stood and Emma busied herself with winding up the ropes that had held their gear in place.

"What is that?"

"Clothes," Emma replied. "Sensible, practical clothes far more suited for camping than what you're wearing right now. Let me guess, you didn't even pack any shorts, did you?"

"Don't be ridiculous, I don't own shorts."

"Then it's a good thing I went shopping for you, isn't it?"

It was quite the sight to see Regina staring down at the bag in disbelief, almost as if she didn't know whether to bark out an insult or a word of gratitude for the gesture. Regina's silence, however, was worse than the anger that Emma could practically see bubbling just under the surface of her olive toned skin.

Regina kicked at the bag with her muddy shoe and rolled her eyes, stalking away to her car to retrieve the food she'd packed for them that weekend. Emma sighed and tossed the rope into the bed of the truck and leaned up against the side, watching Regina as she unloaded the cooler from the trunk of her car and placed down on the ground beside her.

"What are you doing?" Emma asked. "Aren't we going to keep the food in your car? Did you not hear what I said about the raccoons?"

"And did you not hear when I told you what a terrible idea that is?" Regina snapped as she shook her head and slammed the trunk shut. "The food will spoil, dear. Perhaps we can figure something else out in the meantime."

"What, like hang it from a tree? That only works when there are bears, Regina."

"There are bears?" Regina looked at her in alarm.

"No, I was just saying—you know what, never mind. We'll figure something else out, okay? Why don't you change into something, I don't know, more comfortable and we can help Henry find—"

"I _am_ comfortable," Regina replied, the bite in her tone still very much there. "And if you think I am going to go traipsing through the woods collecting firewood, you are sorely mistaken, Miss. Swan."

Emma's eye twitched and she knew from the name Regina had called her that she was definitely pissed off and her mood was turning sourer by the minute. She could only hope that once the anger subsided that they could at least have a quiet first night around the fire, roasting marshmallows and afterwards, when Henry was in his tent, they'd drink some wine that Emma had brought along and they'd talk for a while before they too went to bed for the night.

Her genius plan was falling apart and it hadn't even been twenty minutes. She had to figure it out and she had to figure it out soon.

[X]

Regina sat on the plastic chair that she had set up just a couple of feet away from the fire and opposite of Henry and Emma. Despite the heat that had lingered during the day, the sun started to set and it brought along with it a slight chill in the air. Regina shivered and leaned forward, her hands held out towards the fire, listening to Henry and Emma as they spoke quietly on the other side.

"There is a creek about a quarter of a mile away," Emma said. "I was thinking that tomorrow morning we could go down and check it out. We might even be able to go swimming."

"In a creek?" Henry asked and Regina smiled at the obvious bite in his tone, one that was so very similar to her own. "Really, Ma? You want to go swimming in a creek? Is it even deep enough?"

"Well, it's not some bubbling brook or anything," she chuckled. "It's more like a river only it's not wide enough or whatever to be considered a river."

"Mom?"

"Yes, dear?"

"You're coming with us tomorrow, right?"

"Do I have a choice?" Regina asked, stifling a yawn. "The plan was for us to spend time together this weekend, was it not?"

"Yeah, but—" Henry started and stopped when Emma shook her head. Regina could just barely make out their faces over the fire and it looked as if Emma was whispering or mouthing something to him. "Right. Well, we'll check it out after breakfast, how does that sound?"

"Sounds like a plan, dear," Regina smiled at him and she rose from her chair slowly. "Um, where exactly are the toilet facilities?" She asked, feeling a slight burn to her cheeks as Emma looked up at her with wide eyes that gave her the answer she knew she should've expected. "Of course. We're expected to squat in the woods like we're savages. Please tell me you at least packed toilet paper."

When neither of them answered her, she stormed off towards her car, muttering how it would be so much easier if she had her magic. Perhaps she'd construct a small little cabin for herself, one that would protect her from the elements of nature and had a working bathroom with a flushable toilet and running water. She was still muttering to herself while rooting around through some of the supplies that were still in the trunk when she felt a hand land on the small of her back.

"Here," Emma said as she held out a small shovel. "Take this with you."

"What exactly am I supposed to do with that?"

"Look, this is all a part of the camping in the wilderness experience, Regina. You dig yourself a hole and uh, relieve yourself and—"

"I get it," she groaned and she found a box of Kleenex in the trunk and she slammed it shut, grabbing the small shovel roughly out of Emma's hands. "And where exactly do you expect me to go? I would like some privacy."

"Just down there," Emma replied, pointing over to where there were thick bushes just past the tree line.

Regina shook her head and took off towards the thick bushes, wishing she had never given in to her son's ridiculous demands to come away with him and his other mother for a weekend of camping.

Thankfully nothing else went wrong and after Regina excused herself to retire for the night, she kissed her teenaged son on the forehead and gave a curt nod towards Emma before retreating into her tent. She changed, not into the pajamas she had packed for herself, but the ones that Emma had bought for her.

Flannel. She hated flannel, but she knew with the dampness that lingered in the cooling night air, she needed something far more substantial than the satin pajamas she was used to sleeping in. She chose not to put much thought into it as she crawled into her sleeping bag on top of the air mattress, because thinking too much would cause the anger she had bubbling inside of her to flare up even more. The last thing she wanted was to ruin Henry's weekend camping with his mother's because that is what he wanted and her son's happiness always would come before her own.

[X]

"This is a disaster," Emma groaned, coming to a stop when she reached the campsite. They had been down at the creek, which of course looked more like a brown river of water, all morning and Emma had offered to head back to the site to grab some food so they could eat on the bank while Henry tried to catch some fish for dinner.

She hadn't expected to come back to Regina's tent shredded, her clothes strewn everywhere, the air mattress popped and her sleeping bag currently occupied by two huge raccoons.

"Shit," she muttered as she grabbed the short shovel, unsure of how she was going to chase the raccoons away. "Go on, get out of here!" Emma hissed at them and the bigger of the two hissed right back. "Look, you guys are lucky she doesn't have her magic out here or she'd incinerate you for even thinking of ruining her things!"

Another hiss and she grumbled under her breath and quickly glanced over at the truck where they'd stored the food that hung from mesh bags from a branch just above. It was untouched, of course it was and that meant that whatever Regina had in her tent had obviously been something that attracted the pair of raccoons and invited them to make themselves at home after they destroyed her things.

"She's going to kill me. She'll make this seem like it is all my fault and she will—"

"What the hell happened here?" Regina yelled, storming off the path and across the campsite. "Swan!"

"See, told you," she muttered to herself. "Regina—"

"Who did this?" Regina asked and she stormed over to where her sleeping bag was to pick it up and yelped loudly as both raccoons hissed loudly at her. "What are you just standing there for?" Regina asked as she ran over to where she was standing. "Get rid of those filthy animals!"

"Yeah, I'm trying to figure out how to do that without getting clawed or bitten."

"Oh give me that," Regina snapped and she grabbed the shovel out of Emma's hands, stalking over to where the raccoons laid about in her sleeping bag. "Get out of here, you filthy animals! Go on. Shoo!"

Emma bit her lip to keep from laughing, but the sight was hilarious with Regina in heels and grey slacks, her white button down shirt rolled up at the sleeves, fighting off two huge raccoons with a short shovel. When Regina growled low in her throat, Emma took a step back as did the two raccoons. The sound was terrifying and it turned Emma on too, but now wasn't the time to think about _that_ , not when Regina inched towards the raccoons and continued to growl.

After the animals had scurried off, Regina plunged the short shovel into the soft earth and began to pick up what was left of her destroyed clothing. Emma stepped forward to help, blushing when she found what was left of a red lacy thong. Regina's eyes snapped over to her the moment she picked it up and she dropped it, holding up her hands in surrender.

"I suppose I cannot leave despite this mishap," Regina muttered, moving to snatch up the scrap of fabric Emma had just dropped. "I did promise our son, after all, that I would at least try to stick it out for the whole weekend."

"Right."

"My tent is unsalvageable, as are my things," Regina continued. "I don't understand how something like this could happen and why did those filthy animals go into _my_ tent? Why not yours, Swan?"

Emma shrugged and glanced around and that's when she saw it, at least what was left of it. She walked over and crouched on the ground and picked up the chocolate bar wrapper. "Is this yours?"

"Possibly," Regina said with a slight pink tint glowing on her cheeks.

"Hey, I'm not judging you," Emma laughed easily. "It's just that I'm thinking this was what they were after is all. Hey, was this an Apollo bar by any chance?"

"And if it was?"

"Like I said, I'm not judging you, but I get this crazy craving for these and the only place I've ever seen them is in Storybrooke. Was this a part of the—"

"Yes, it was," Regina snapped and she looked down at the ruined clothing she'd gathered in her arms and let out a rather deflated sigh. "If I must stay, where am I sleeping tonight?"

Emma shrugged coyly but inside she was mentally high fiving herself for this unplanned disaster that perfectly fit within her genius idea to tell Regina how she felt about her finally. She cast a glance to her own tent, virtually untouched and shrugged again.

"You could always bunk with me."

"What makes you think I would want to?"

"I have a double sized air mattress," Emma shrugged, fighting the smile that tried to force its way across her lips. "Not to mention my tent is bigger than Henry's and I doubt you'd want to spend the night sleeping in a small tent with our son, our sixteen-year-old son."

Regina's incredulous look made her laugh in spite of herself. She placed a hand on Regina's shoulder and gave her a reassuring squeeze.

"Besides, I don't need to remind you about the incident last weekend when you called me in a panic because of those magazines you found under his bed while you were snooping—"

"I was gathering laundry! I was certainly _not_ snooping!"

"Like I said, I don't think you'll want to spend the night in his tent."

"What are you implying, Miss. Swan?" Regina asked with a dangerous, dark bite to her tone.

"I'm not implying anything, but I have a sneaking suspicion that he probably has a few more of those magazines stashed in his bag right now."

Regina scowled and stormed off to her car, dumping her ruined clothing into the trunk in a huff. She was certainly wound up tighter than normal, which Emma knew wasn't a good sign, but it's also why she made sure she'd brought along a few bottles of wine she had Henry sneak out of the wine cellar in the mansion without Regina knowing they had been taken.

That was on top of the two cheap bottles she'd picked up from the store the day before, before she came up with the oh so genius idea to get their son to steal from his own mother's wine cellar. No, Emma reminded herself, it wasn't stealing, it was _borrowing_ and it wasn't really even that either, not if Regina drank it with her and she planned on doing just that later in the day, preferably after convincing Henry to go off "exploring" while they did.

Emma approached the destroyed tent and frowned at the sight. None of it was salvageable or repairable and it was a shame because Regina had dropped some serious cash on it too. She stepped inside and most of Regina's personal belongings were scattered throughout. There were mostly clothes, some makeup, and a very specific object that immediately caught her eye. It was small and if caught by someone unknowledgeable, it would just be passed off as an odd tube of lipstick, but oh no, Emma was not unknowledgeable and she knew _exactly_ what that specific object was indeed.

"What are you doing?" Regina asked and Emma quickly deposited the small item into the front pocket of her jeans before stepping out of the destroyed tent. "I suppose we cannot get a refund on the tent after this trip, hmm?"

Emma laughed, albeit a little nervously. "No," she said with a slight shake of her head. "We definitely won't get a refund."

[X]

Regina relaxed as much as she could in the hard plastic chair, a glass of wine in one hand while the other picked at the flannel pajama bottoms she wore. Beside her Emma sat dressed in similar pajamas, sipping her wine—wine Regina knew from the moment she saw the bottle was from _her_ cellar and taken without her permission—from a plastic glass and exhaled sharply.

The sky above the canopy of trees that surrounded the small clearing was filled with brilliant hues of pinks, purples and reds, and it cast an ethereal glow around them. The fire, much smaller than the night before, burned in front of them and the only sound that transpired was that of the crackling and sizzling of the wood.

Despite the many wrongs that had happened thus far, Regina finally felt at ease, felt relaxed enough that she simply forgot about the incident that had happened earlier in the day and enjoyed her wine, tacky plastic glass and all. She downed the last of her wine and idly held out the glass towards Emma, watching as she grabbed the bottle without a word and poured her the last of it, nearly a full glass.

"It's nice out here tonight," Emma mused quietly. "Isn't it?"

"I suppose," Regina replied and she lifted the plastic glass—blue with bubbles at that—to her lips and sipped. "It's quiet."

"Yeah, it is."

"I like the quiet," Regina said softly and turned to look over at Emma, watching her and finding herself quite mesmerized at the sight of her with the light of the fire and the sunset cascading across her face. "What about you?"

"Hmm?"

"Do you like the quiet?"

"Yes," Emma said just under her breath. "Sometimes."

Regina knew she would never admit it openly, but she did enjoy quiet moments with her, for as the few and far in between as they were. Even when things grew tense between them, the quiet always calmed her nerves and made her feel more at ease than anyone else ever had. Regina shook her head at herself, knowing those thoughts were leading to dangerous territories and ones she wasn't exactly quite ready or open to tackle just yet. She allowed herself to roam her eyes over the blonde's flannel clad body and while it did nothing to flatter her, something stirred within her as she drank in the sight of her.

_We're friends_ , she reminded herself before sipping—gulping—her wine. Her eyes, however, continued to betray her as she drank in the sight of the slightly intoxicated blonde seated next to her.

"Did Henry come back?" Regina asked, her gaze suddenly flickering towards their son's tent across the clearing.

"He did," Emma replied easily. "Kind of gave us that shrug and roll before retreating into his tent."

Regina sighed and took yet another sip. "He's a typical teenager, isn't he?"

"Yeah, I guess," Emma shrugged. "I wasn't a typical teenager and neither were you so we really can't thrust him into that social norm, can we?"

"I suppose not."

They sat there in silence for a short while longer before Regina emptied her glass and placed it on the ground beside her hard plastic chair. Without a word, she headed for Emma's tent, completely focused on one goal in mind in her slightly tipsy state and that was to curl up on the double air mattress Emma had in her tent and get some halfway decent sleep.

It didn't take her long to succumb to sleep and not to mention the fact that the moment she settled down she realized Emma's air mattress was far more comfortable than hers had been before those disgusting animals had decided to shred everything of hers to pieces. She didn't even register the fact that she was sharing the air mattress and the sleeping bag with her son's other mother, not until Emma finally crawled in beside her an hour or so later and an arm that easily managed to make its way over her lower abdomen.

Regina tensed at the unexpected closeness to the usually infuriating blonde woman. This wasn't normal but then again they'd been drinking and she suspected that Emma had a little more than she did in the time since she'd retreated to the tent for the night.

"Emma," Regina muttered when Emma's fingers slipped just under the hem of her pajama top and stroked along the skin just below her navel. "Emma?"

Regina placed a hand over hers and removed it from her body. She clenched her eyes shut tightly as she moved to the far edge of the mattress and as far away from Emma Swan as she could manage without ending up on the tent floor. She listened to the quiet, to the soft breathing next to her, close but not as close as before and she heard the soft cracks and pops that came from the dying fire outside and then she heard the hooting of an owl not too far along with the sounds of crickets somewhere out there, near but not far.

It was those sounds that lulled her back into her slumber, but peaceful it was not. It never was, but nobody needed to know that. It was one reason she was terrified of sharing a bed with anyone, especially Henry's other mother. Nightmares plagued her, but that wasn't the only reason. She wouldn't let herself think of the other reason, she couldn't, wouldn't.

[X]

Emma chewed on her bottom lip, watching Regina as she lay on her side as far away from her as she could get on the double air mattress. She hadn't meant to be so bold, it was the wine that made her, and it was the wine mixed with her feelings for the other woman that made it so easy just to slip inside the sleeping bag and place a hand over her stomach. Like it belonged there. Like it was a welcome touch. Like it was wanted, even.

The way that Regina had stiffened made the words she was about to say fall flat on her lips and tongue. Emma knew it wasn't supposed to be this hard, but nothing was ever easy when it came to Regina Mills. The wine, it was supposed to relax them both and ease the words she couldn't otherwise say past her lips. Her head felt fuzzy and the words were there, but silent and dead on her lips.

Emma exhaled sharply, squinting her eyes as she watched Regina, knowing she was fighting to find sleep after she had so rudely woken her up. She had expected Regina to throw her off the air mattress or yell at her for pulling a move on her like only a lover should be allowed to do, but there had been nothing. Nothing but silence and stiffness until Emma took it one step further and slid her fingers under the hem of her pajama top and over soft, warm skin.

Her wrist still burned where Regina had grabbed it and forced it away from her and she sighed softly, trailing her fingers over the space that was between them and wishing for courage because she knew that was exactly what she needed in that moment more than anything, courage.

Emma could feel the buzz in her body from the wine start to fade as the hours went by slowly. She couldn't sleep, not with her mind racing and her eyes trained on the back of Regina's head in the darkness of the tent.

She inched forward when she heard a small gasp and then she felt the air mattress move as Regina's body jerked slightly. Emma scrunched her brow in confusion and lay there stiffly until she heard another noise coming from the woman next to her, this time a small whimper.

"Regina?" Emma whispered as she tentatively reached out and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Hey, Regina?"

"Hmm?" Regina murmured sleepily as she rolled on to her back. "What is it?"

"Are you all right?"

"I was sleeping, Emma," she sighed and lifted a hand to rub at her eyes. "What is it that you felt the great need to wake me up in the middle of the night for?"

Emma clenched her jaw and shook her head. "Nothing, it's nothing, you were—"

"Dreaming," Regina finished for her flatly. "Which is something that I'd very much like to get back to considering you have quite the itinerary planned for tomorrow."

"Sorry. Good night, Regina."

"Good night."

Emma sighed as she turned her head on the pillow and looked up at the top of the tent. She had her fists balled tightly under the sleeping bag and suddenly she felt far too warm and pushed the bag down to her hips, sighing louder as she let her still balled fists fall to the air mattress hard. It was all so very ridiculous and Emma knew she should just be able to talk to Regina. They were friends, they'd been friends for years and they had talked plenty of times about just about everything. It shouldn't have to be this hard and yet there she was, thirty-four years old and acting like a stupid teenager with a crush.

A crush on a very attractive yet highly unattainable woman.

Emma closed her eyes and willed sleep to come, but she felt the mattress move and then the soft brush of Regina's hands against her tightly coiled fist. She swallowed thickly before opening her eyes and she relaxed her hands, uncoiling them from the tight fists.

"Emma?" Regina whispered softly. "Do you want to tell me what is going on with you?"

"Nothing," Emma replied immediately. "Nothing is going on. I just can't sleep."

"And why is that, dear?"

"Nothing, it's nothing."

She heard Regina sigh softly and then felt the shift of the mattress and the warmth coming from Regina as she move to lay closer to her. Regina's hand was still on hers and she inhaled shakily when Regina moved to intertwine their fingers gently. It was such a small gesture, but Emma couldn't recall ever having held Regina's hand, at least not like that. It felt good and it felt natural and she could feel her heart racing as she squeezed her eyes shut once more.

"I wasn't dreaming," Regina whispered and that made Emma open her eyes again and she turned to look at her, just faintly able to make her out in the darkness. "When you woke me, I wasn't dreaming."

"I'm not following—"

"It wasn't a dream," Regina sighed. "It was a nightmare. A recurring one."

"Oh. Well, uh, do you want to, I don't know, talk about it?"

"Not particularly," she replied softly. "Do you want to talk about whatever it is that is bothering you or are you going to tell me again that it is nothing?"

"I—I don't know if I can."

"Try, dear," Regina said and she gently stroked a thumb over hers. "We are friends, are we not?" Upon Emma's silent nod, she continued. "You've never had any difficulties talking to me in the past. We've spent hours, countless hours talking with one another."

"Yeah, we have."

Regina didn't respond and Emma knew why. She was waiting for her to speak, to tell her what "nothing" truly was about. Emma felt her palm grow clammy against Regina's and yet when she tried to take her hand away, Regina's grip tightened. Emma laughed quietly, knowing that it was absolutely ridiculous that she just couldn't say it out loud, well she could and she had when she rehearsed this in the mirror at her apartment for days on an end, but this was different, this wasn't a mirror she was talking to, this was Regina.

"Here's the thing, I don't even know how to talk about this with you because it has to do with you and I'm not even sure where to start," Emma said and she cursed at herself silently because that was not how it was supposed to go. "Regina, we've been friends for a few years, haven't we?"

"Yes, we've already determined that we are friends."

"Well I—" Emma sighed loudly and when she went to pull her hand free of Regina's that time, Regina let her. "Shit, I can't do this."

"Emma, what is it?" Regina asked, genuinely sounding concerned. "Emma?"

"I don't know if I can do this."

"Take a deep breath and let it go, dear."

Emma laughed sharply, but took a deep breath afterwards, holding it for a moment before exhaling slowly. "I love that we're friends now, you know? It's good for Henry that we get along."

"Of course."

"We still bicker," Emma said and she heard Regina chuckle quietly. "Which you know, it's totally us and sometimes when we go days without bickering about one thing or another, I kind of do miss it."

"I see."

"The thing is Regina, I—" Emma stopped suddenly and turned to look at Regina who was staring at her intensely in the dark. "I don't know how it happened," she said nervously. "I don't know how or when or why it happened, it just did."

"What did you do now?" Regina asked as she sat up on the air mattress quickly and Emma did the same, reaching for the small electric lantern beside her and switched it on. "Emma, what did you do? It is something absolutely horrible, isn't it? Is that why you can't tell me?"

"Regina, what? No!" Emma sighed and she saw the anger in Regina's eyes change into something else, into concern. "No, it's not something I did because trust me if I did anything bad, you'd know by now."

"Would I?" Regina asked and there was a slight teasing tone to her voice.

Emma bit her bottom lip as she stared at the other woman. She could see how tired she was and the slight sleep lines on the left side of her cheek. She looked so out of sorts wearing flannel, but she was still as beautiful as she always was. Emma glanced down at her hands, noticing that they were trembling and Regina noticed as well because she chose then to reach forward and took Emma's hands in her own.

"Emma, I'm starting to get the feeling that there was more to this whole camping trip. Am I right? Is that what this is about?"

"Yes."

Regina nodded and shifted forward slightly, tightening her grip on Emma's still trembling hands. "What is it that you can't tell me?" She asked and then she quirked an eyebrow at her as a realization suddenly dawned on her. "Are you seeing someone?"

"What? No, I—"

"Are you pregnant?"

"Do you think I'd be drinking wine if I was?" Emma asked and Regina clamped her mouth shut and shook her head no. "Regina—"

"You said this is about me," Regina said, backpedalling a little bit. "Does this involve Henry? He's not—oh god, don't tell me he's having sex with that trollop he's been dating."

"Henry isn't having sex with Grace, Regina," Emma sighed and then her eyes went wide. "At least I hope he's not!"

"I will kill him if he even so much thinks of—"

"Regina," Emma said softly, watching the anger trickle over her face and then disappear as she squeezed her hands back just a tight. She needed to bite the bullet and just tell her, courage or no courage. "Regina, this has nothing to do with Henry, okay?"

"Then why don't you just tell me what you're clearly avoiding telling me!" Regina said, her voice rising as she jerked her hands away from her. "Stop being such a _coward_ and tell me!"

Emma swallowed hard and stared right at her, looking at her as if she was seeing her for the first time all over again. Her whole body buzzed and it wasn't from the wine she'd drunk earlier, but rather from the emotions that were coursing through her body all at once. How could she not have fallen in love with this woman? She had been there to see all the changes she'd gone through, the hardships she'd taken to get to where she was now and she was still without a happy ending yet she wasn't so hung up on that part much anymore.

Emma took a deep breath, sensing that Regina was about to go off on her again, likely call her an idiot and add another jab at being a coward in there too. She ran her fingers through her hair, her hands trembling as her heart raced hard and fast.

"What I've been trying to tell you, Regina, is that I'm in love with you."

Regina sat there with a blank expression and she suddenly blinked her eyes rapidly. "What?"

"Are you serious, Regina? You want me to say it again?" Emma asked with a smile dancing over her lips. "I'm in love with you."

[X]

Regina stared at Emma with her mouth slightly agape and she shifted on the air mattress while absentmindedly running her fingers over the sleeping bag. Had she just heard her right? Had Emma Swan just told her that she's in love with her?

"What?" Regina asked for a second time in the last couple of minutes and wet her lips. "Did you just tell me that you're—"

"In love with you," Emma replied, saying the words for a third time. "Yes."

"Oh."

"Yeah. Oh."

Regina was speechless. She didn't know what to say in that moment. What was Emma expecting? For her to return the sentiment? "Emma, I—"

"Look, you don't have to say anything," Emma said in a rush and in the soft glow of the lantern she could see her cheeks were flushed pink. "I wanted you to know and I didn't know how to tell you. I didn't want to make things awkward between us. Did I? I totally did, didn't I?"

"Emma—"

"God, I mean we're friends and we're co-parenting Henry here and I swear I don't know when or how or why this happened, I just know that it did and that I feel this way about you," Emma continued and when Regina opened her mouth to speak, Emma held up a hand before continuing. "I didn't tell you because I want something from you or even expect you to feel the same way because that is absolutely ridiculous isn't it? We're _friends_ and I respect that, in fact I don't want to stop being friends and I swear I can try and move past this if it's too weird for you or whatever but I—"

"Emma," Regina snapped lightly. "Shut up for one moment, would you?"

"Sorry," Emma said quickly and clamped her mouth shut. "I'll shut up, but now do you understand why I wanted to be outside of Storybrooke? I was afraid you'd—"

"I would what?" Regina asked, an amused smirk curling over her lips. "That I would fireball you because you revealed your feelings to me?"

"I—yeah, pretty much."

For once Regina felt at ease because she was letting go of fighting the feelings she too harboured inside of her, feelings she had tried to convince herself weren't real and only there because they had grown close and were co-parenting Henry, raising him together and teaching him how to be a good man. The truth was and she felt so relieved just to let it go free, even if she didn't exactly voice it herself, she felt the same way for Emma and always was so very convinced that it could and never would happen between them, for various reasons.

"Look, I'm sorry, Regina—"

"You tell me you're in love with me and then apologize?" Regina jabbed and Emma opened and closed her mouth like a fish out of water. "Oh, Emma, you idiot…you wonderful, amazing, adorable idiot."

"Huh?"

Regina laughed and leaned forward, reaching out to slide a hand gently along Emma's flushed cheek. She reasoned with herself that maybe it wasn't a good idea, but she shook her head—mostly to herself and the barrage of thoughts pounding through her mind—and she leaned forward to place a soft kiss upon the lips of the stunned blonde in front of her.

The kiss was light and chaste and Regina didn't press for more, she just let her lips linger for a moment before she pulled back slowly. She watched Emma carefully, watched as Emma's eyes fluttered open and a pink tongue darted out and slowly slid across her slightly parted lips. Regina swallowed thickly, unsure of what to say or do next, and all she could do was sit there and watch a host of emotions that fluttered across Emma's flushed cheeks.

She leaned forward to kiss her again, partially because it was all that consumed her mind in the moment and partially because she was just as lost for words as Emma seemed to be. This time the kiss was far from chaste, far from a lingering peck. Regina wasn't sure who initiated in taking things a step further, but she was otherwise preoccupied with kissing Emma deeply, their tongues swirling, dancing, dominating, both looking to take the upper hand one way or another.

Regina only pulled back when she began to feel dizzy and she smiled at the dazed woman in front of her, leaning forward once more to plant one last kiss upon her lips.

"I think we should get some rest, Emma," Regina said softly. "It is the middle of the night and as I said before, you have quite the itinerary planned for tomorrow."

"I—yeah, you're right. Sleep," Emma nodded as they both moved to lie back down beside one another and Emma clicked off the lantern. "Good night, Regina."

"Good night, Emma."

She may have not said the words back to Emma, but she had hoped she conveyed her own feelings through the kiss, both times. The whole thing between them now felt so completely surreal, especially since Emma had woken her up from one of her many recurring nightmares that plagued her for much longer than she cared to think of.

She closed her eyes yet knew that sleep wouldn't come easily or willingly. She thought of how she'd been, especially since arriving at the campsite the day before. She had been cold, cut off, and snippy—and it wasn't entirely her fault either. She had been so tired lately, tired and lonely and fighting the feelings she felt for the other woman in an attempt to convince herself she didn't have deeply rooted feelings for her son's birth mother and a woman who had become a very close friend over the years.

Regina turned her head on the pillow, one that smelled so much like the blonde next to her and she inhaled deeply, slowly, her eyes adjusting to the darkness and she caught the sight of Emma laying there next to her, eyes wide open and staring up at the roof of the tent. She wanted nothing more than to reach out, to touch her, and now that the wall had been torn down between them with Emma's admission of love and that kiss, especially that second one, she felt no hesitation as she reached out and laid a hand over Emma's shoulder.

"You—you aren't the only one," Regina murmured, sliding closer to her as the air mattress shifted beneath her weight. "With feelings, I mean."

"Regina, I didn't tell you because I expected—"

"I know that," Regina cut her off quickly. "I've been—gods, it seems so silly now, but I've been trying to convince myself otherwise."

"Convince yourself of what?"

"That I don't feel that way about you," she murmured, her words, although not quite the declaration of love, came far easier than it had for Emma. "I—"

Emma's lips upon hers stole the words from her lips, stole her very breath away, and all she could do was succumb to her completely. Their bodies seemed to gravitate towards one another and she needed more once she had felt the heat of Emma's body nearly scorching her own. The intensity of their kiss—and so much more—flowed strongly between them, igniting her in ways she had never felt before and it only caused her to fall even deeper within the kiss that was so much more than just a kiss.

It came as no surprise to her when Emma took more control, moving to lie on top of her, her body hovering slightly as they continued to kiss hungrily. Regina was tentative, unsure of what to do with her hands. She wanted to touch Emma, to wrap her arms around her and tell her without as many words that she wanted to feel the weight of her body upon her own.

She focused on the kiss, the way Emma's lips felt on her own, the taste of her and the strong determination in every caress of her tongue. It was the way that Emma sucked on her top lip before parting for a moment, breaths hitching in their chests that flipped a switch for Regina. Gone was the budding nervousness she hadn't felt since her teenage years in that very instant. Her hands went to Emma's back and she grasped on to the back of her pajama top, pulling the other woman flush down against her and kissed her hard.

[X]

Emma was swimming in a host of emotions as she kissed Regina with fiery passion, her whole body responding to the woman beneath her. She didn't want to think of how many years she had fantasized about kissing Regina—and a whole lot more—and she didn't want to listen to the tiny voice in the back of her mind that maybe they should slow things down. What she wanted was to keep kissing her, all lips, tongue and teeth. What she wanted was to know the feel of her skin against her fingertips and feel the heat of her flesh without the barrier of their pajamas in the way.

Emma moaned into Regina's mouth quietly, shifting until she could grind her hips down and could feel the heat coming from Regina's core against her own. She moved her hand to Regina's left thigh, running it down her leg smoothly, confidently, and she pulled her leg up around her hip, opening Regina up a little beneath her. It was a move that gave Regina leverage and one that shouldn't have caught her quite as off guard as it had.

Even in the darkness she could see this feral, lustful darkness in Regina's eyes when she parted from her lips with a gasp. It turned her on, it made that delicious buzz of arousal burn harder, hotter through her body and she slipped her hands under the hem of Regina's pajama top, moaning softly at the feel of her soft skin against her fingertips and the palms of her hands.

She smoothed her hands over the soft, warm skin of Regina's back, their hips jerking and thrusting, seeking out more. They stared at one another with Regina's hands planted firmly on the air mattress on either side of Emma. Their lips were not quite touching and their short, sharp gasps of breaths mingling. The moment hung in the air and Emma felt her cunt throb in anticipation the moment Regina moved a hand to the back of her neck and crushed their lips together once more.

She knew Regina well enough to know they wouldn't stop and talk, they wouldn't hold back and say things were moving too quickly between them. The talking part would come after, or the next day or even sometime next week. All either of them were focused on was each other and the burn of arousal that without a doubt they both were feeling in the heat of the moment.

What really turned her on was the low, throaty moan that slipped past Regina's lips when she moved her hands down to grasp onto her firm and pliable ass. Regina ground her hips down jerkily at the touch and the hand that was firmly gripping on to the back of her neck began a slow ascent around her shoulder and down across her chest, her palm grasping at her left breast hard and without hesitation. It caused her to arch up into Regina's hand, the kiss growing wildly wanton as she grasped Regina's ass a little harder, her short nails digging in through the soft material of her pajama pants and eliciting another low, throaty moan past Regina's lips.

Emma shivered slightly as she pulled back from Regina's lips and waited for the intoxicating woman on top of her to open her beautiful brown eyes. She slid her hands under the hem of her top once more, smoothing her palms across a flat stomach and up over the swell of her breasts. Regina moaned softly, shuddering as Emma's thumbs grazed over semi-erect nipples, teasing them until they were hard and stiff.

Emma nuzzled her nose against Regina's, coaxing her without words to open her eyes, but she kept them shut and kissed over Emma's lips softly, her hand that groped her breast moving down her side to grasp at her hip. Emma smiled against her lips in the soft kiss they shared before moving her lips down over her chin, her jaw and her neck, all the while moving until they were both sitting upright with Regina in her lap, her hands moving to hold on to Emma's shoulders as her lips kissed along the column of her neck.

She could sense the change in Regina's mood the moment her fingers started to unbutton the flannel pajama top and Regina placed a hand in the middle of her chest and pushed her back down against the air mattress. She exhaled sharply and saw the fire that burned in Regina's eyes even in the relative darkness that surrounded them. She could only lay there and watch, her hands coming to rest on Regina's hips as Regina unbuttoned the top three buttons before pulling the top up and over her head.

"Fuck," Emma breathed out, drinking in this sight of her, her hands moving up her bare sides as she moved to lean up, to kiss along the now exposed skin, but Regina's hand was back on her chest, pushing her down hard. "Jesus, Regina."

"Be quiet," she hissed before roughly kissing her once more.

All Emma could do was comply with her demand, losing herself in the passionate and deep kiss that had every inch of her body aflame with desire. Regina's fingers worked at the buttons on Emma's top, growing frustrated by the time she reached the third, nearly ripping the top open until Emma's hands fell on top of her own, her fingers soothing tense ones.

"Let me," Emma whispered against her lips, deftly unbuttoning each one while Regina leaned back and slipped her hands inside the opening, her palms and fingertips feeling hot against the sensitive flesh of her breasts. "Fuck."

"Emma," Regina groaned quietly and leaned forward. "If you do not remain quiet, I will put a stop to this," she said through gritted teeth, enunciating her point with a hard pinch of each nipple. "Understood?"

"Y—yes."

The smile the curled over Regina's lips was deliciously sinful and if Emma wasn't already thoroughly aroused, she definitely was in that moment. She reached up and pulled Regina back down, crushing their lips together while her other hand swept down the smooth expanse of Regina's bare back and under the hem of her pajama pants. She raked her short nails over her hip just under the soft fabric and Regina pulled back from the hard kiss, her eyes searching Emma's in an almost desperate manner.

As inexperienced as she was when it came to women, Emma had a pause for thought and wondered if that was the case for Regina as well. She wanted to ask, but bit her tongue, not wanting to aggravate Regina to the point where she would put a stop to things completely. As far as first times went, she had definitely not envisioned things between her and Regina quite like that and when she stopped to really think about it, she wasn't even sure what she had expected.

She eased both hands over Regina's back, trailing her fingertips up and down her spine, trying to turn the tables, take it from hard and needy to tender and slow. She was in love with her and she wanted to convey those emotions as best as she could. She wanted to worship her, every inch of her, make her feel thoroughly loved, inside and out. It was only then that she saw the vulnerable look in Regina's lust filled eyes did she still her hands and kissed her softly.

[X]

Regina was swimming in a mass of emotions as it all crashed down onto her at once. Nobody ever had touched her in the way Emma was, it was soft, gentle, and it was a touch that could only come from someone in love. It frustrated her, having those thoughts. Sex was about passion, about needs being met and mainly her own, but that wasn't at all what her mind was focused on. No, it was focused on the blonde beauty beneath her and the feel of their soft skin against one another.

She had been fighting something inside of her from the moment she had crossed the town line. She had been teetering back and forth from the woman she used to be and the woman she had become. She struggled to find the line in between, to find the balance. She liked sex hard, fast and rough, never having known a tender touch before and that alone scared her just a tiny bit because in that very moment, as she stared down into Emma's eyes, it was all she wanted.

It was almost absurd because there was nothing romantic about having sex in a tent on an air mattress for the first time. She didn't even want to think about the fact that their teenaged son was in a tent less than thirty feet away from them. She just wanted to become lost within Emma Swan, to be consumed by her completely.

"Regina?" Emma whispered, her hands caressing her back just below her shoulder blades. "Are you okay?"

"What part of be quiet did you not understand?" She snapped under her breath.

"Hey," Emma shook her head and placed a hand gently on her cheek, her thumb lightly stroking the corner of her lip. "Regina, I'm serious, are you okay?" She asked and when Regina refused to answer, soft lips slipped over her own in a kiss that she barely felt. "We don't have to do this."

"I want to," Regina said quietly, wincing at how needy and vulnerable her voice sounded. "I want you," she said more firmly. "I want you, Emma, I want this."

"Then let me," Emma whispered, their lips meeting in a slow yet loving kiss that stole Regina's breath away. Emma rolled them over and smiled down at her as she pulled back from the kiss. "Let me take care of you. I got you."

Regina lay there and watched as Emma pulled off her unbuttoned top and tossed it haphazardly to the side. She found herself watching Emma's lips as she licked over them slowly and grinned in a purely salacious way. Emma moved to lie on her side next to her, slipping a firm thigh between Regina's legs while she trailed a single fingertip over her collarbone, her eyes drinking in every inch of her that she could see.

She had been on the receiving end of adoring lovers looking at her like they had never seen the sight of a naked woman in front of them, but the way Emma looked at her was far different than that. Emma looked at her with more than lust in her eyes. There was a look of pure adoration and love and it made her whole body tremble beneath the soft touch that lingered just over the top of her breasts. She couldn't hold back the moan that slipped out as Emma's lips began a blazing path across her bare shoulder.

As before, she was unsure what to do with her hands and settled on stroking her fingers through Emma's hair, gently urging her to move her lips to a straining nipple desperate for attention. She felt Emma smile against the swell of her left breast and a hot, wet tongue dipped out, licking over her skin languidly and just shy of her hard nub. Regina arched her back, pulling Emma down against her, moaning as she was rewarded by a firm stroke of her tongue that ignited the most delicious burn of arousal deep within her core.

She gasped at the scrape of teeth against her hard nipple and her fingertips clenched at Emma's scalp, albeit too hard as Emma pulled back with a wince. Regina frowned, mouthing, "I'm sorry", before Emma dipped her head back down and kissed her way languidly over her chest, leaning over her slightly as her tongue teased over her right nipple.

Emma moaned against her flesh as a hand slipped between their bodies. Regina reached down to stop her from dipping her hand under the waistband of her pajama bottoms and Emma pulled back, her eyes searching hers almost desperately. Regina pulled her up until they were kissing again, hard and deep, both grasping at the last of material that came between them.

There was nothing graceful about the way they practically tore the bottoms off of one another. Regina grabbed on to Emma's hips, pulling her down hard against her, opening herself up to her completely. A small moan slipped past her lips at the feel of Emma's nearly hairless cunt against her own. The sensation was entirely new for her and deliciously so. She could feel the heat, the wetness as they rolled and jerked their hips together in a frantic attempt to feel more.

[X]

Emma could hardly hold back, the need to feel, to touch, to taste suddenly overwhelming her and she pulled back from Regina's delectable lips, hurriedly trailing a blazing path down her chest and over her abdomen. Every third kiss she placed upon her skin, she glanced up to look at Regina, looking for any signs that she was about to put a stop to everything and every time she saw nothing but lust in her eyes and the tremble in her lower lip as she held back her moans.

Emma knelt between her legs, placing a hard kiss just above the patch of triangular shaped hair that was neatly and closely trimmed. The musky, heady smell of her arousal reignited the fire inside her and she smoothed her hands over Regina's thighs, spreading her wide as she settled down between them.

Her confidence never wavered despite being inexperienced. She kissed along one thigh and then the other, watching in the relative darkness as she slicked her fingers along Regina's wet cunt teasingly. She raked her nails up along Regina's lower abdomen, feeling her body quake beneath her touch.

"Emma," Regina murmured huskily. "Please…don't tease me…"

Emma swallowed thickly, not expecting the former queen to beg. She flicked her eyes up to meet Regina's and she breathed out heavily at the sight of her watching her every move with bated breath. She said nothing as she glanced down at Regina's cunt spread open and ready for her and she dipped her head down and placed a soft kiss just over her clit, feeling the bundle of nerves throbbing slightly against her kiss-swollen lips.

How she longed for a firm bed and more room as her knees rubbed against the floor of the tent, but she was quickly distracted by the taste of Regina upon her lips and she licked over her lips greedily before tentatively swiping her tongue along the length of her slit. It was quite unlike anything she had tasted before—and she had tasted herself from time to time out of pure curiosity. It was addictive, musty yet sweet, and she knew from the second swipe of her tongue she just couldn't quite get enough of the taste of her arousal.

What started out as tentative exploring turned into more in a matter of minutes as she found out exactly what Regina liked and what she needed to push her close to the edge she was quickly approaching. What Regina liked was when she had her mouth fixated over her completely, her tongue teasing the tip into her hole and teeth grazing over tender flesh.

Regina's hands flew to her head, fingers gripping her hair painfully tight as she came undone suddenly. Emma groaned and held onto her thrashing hip, sucking and nipping and licking until she felt Regina's body uncoil slowly.

Emma gradually kissed her way up Regina's body, her skin warm against her lips despite the slight chill that hung in the air. She teased Regina's nipples with her tongue and laughed softly when Regina pulled her up with a huff and crushed their lips together in a frenzied kiss. She parted as she gripped on to Emma's chin, a rather salaciously and deliciously sexy grin curling over her lips before she flipped them with ease on the mattress and straddled Emma's hips.

"Where is it?" Regina murmured, her lips grazing over Emma's nimbly.

"Wh—where is what?"

"What you found in what was left of my tent," Regina demanded in a husky purr.

Emma swallowed hard as she stared into the dark eyes locked with hers. "I have no idea—"

"Yes, you do. Where is it?"

"Pocket. Pants," Emma murmured, enthralled by the control Regina regained over her in just a matter of minutes. Her hands fell to Regina's hips as she leaned over and grabbed the jeans that Emma wore earlier and rifled through the pockets quickly, pulling out the small bullet vibrator. "Shit, Regina, maybe we—"

"Be quiet," she purred as she clicked the device on, the soft buzz deceiving as Emma nearly bucked Regina off of her the moment she pressed it against a hard and straining nipple. "It's my turn now, Emma."

Emma gulped and nodded and watched as Regina's features softened for a moment, kissing her gently yet deeply before biting down on her lower lip hard enough to make her bleed.

Being quiet would be an issue. A challenge. One she knew she couldn't fail because the woman on top of her and teasing her with the small vibrator was unpredictable at best and she could only do what she did best in situations like that. Behave and follow the orders given to her…

[X]

Emma rolled over, the soft morning light beginning to brighten the inside of the tent and she murmured quietly as she wrapped an arm around the warm body next to her in the sleeping bag. A hand covered her own the instant she slid her palm over Regina's breast and she smiled, kissing over her shoulder before Regina turned in her embrace.

"Don't start anything now," Regina said, her voice husky not only with sleep but also with arousal. "We have a long day ahead of us and the sun is up which means our son will be too shortly."

"Hmm," Emma nodded, half-listening to the words coming out of Regina's mouth as she kissed along her jaw slowly. "We still have time to snuggle."

"Emma—"

"Hmm?" Emma smiled as she reached Regina's lips and kissed her lightly, her lips lingering for a second or two before she slid her tongue across Regina's tightly pressed lips that refused her advances. "Is this where we talk about what happened last night?"

"No," Regina said with a coy smile. "This is the part where we get out of bed and get dressed before our son figures out we did a hell of a lot more than share your tent and your air mattress last night, dear," Regina replied and with a playful roll of her eyes, she kissed away the pout that formed on Emma's lips. "Don't pout. We will be talking about this over dinner tonight. I'll expect you to come around to the house no later than eight."

"Okay?"

"Henry can stay at your apartment for the night," Regina continued and all Emma could do was watch her as she grabbed the bag of the clothes she'd brought along for her and sift through it with mild distaste. "I would much prefer to have you in _my_ bed tonight, Emma."

"So," Emma chuckled quietly and wrapped her arms around Regina, pulling her back down next to her. "We're doing this?"

"We will talk tonight."

"We are, aren't we?"

"We are exploring our feelings," Regina replied, nudging at Emma before sitting back up. "I would prefer to keep our…relationship to ourselves for the time being. You do understand _why_ , don't you?"

"Perhaps, but," Emma teased as she pulled her back down once more and quickly moved to lie on top of her, trapping the woman beneath her body. "You might need to spell it out with that thing you do with your tongue."

"You mean the thing that make you _howl_ even though I had ordered you to remain quiet?" Regina asked, her tone taking on a teasing bite to it. She leaned up to kiss Emma deeply, flicking her tongue against her top lip before moving out from underneath Emma's quaking body. "Perhaps," she purred as she grabbed a dark grey tank top out of the bag and pulled it on, "but only if you behave."

Emma sighed and watched as she dressed in the clothes that she would never be caught dead wearing inside of Storybrooke. She paired the tank top with a pair of jean shorts and slipped out of the tent, quickly zipping it back up to allow Emma the privacy to get dressed alone.

[X]

Regina was standing by the camp stove on the picnic bench, trying and failing in figuring out how to turn the contraption on. Her thoughts were scattered in her tired mind and her body ached in ways it never had before, deliciously so. She turned when she heard soft footfalls behind her and tried to hide her disappointment to find it was only Henry behind her and not Emma. He smiled tiredly at her as he rubbed at his eyes and took a seat at the table.

"Morning, Henry."

"Morning," he mumbled and cleared his throat. "Need any help?"

"I cannot seem to figure out how to get this infuriating thing to work."

Henry laughed and moved to help her out and she sighed gratefully when she saw the small flame on the burner appear. "You needed to turn the propane on first, Mom."

"Thank you," she said softly and placed the small kettle filled with water on top of the burner. "Did you sleep well last night?"

"Mostly," Henry shrugged and he rubbed idly at the back of his neck. "Kept hearing noises in the middle of the night."

"Probably just animals, kid," Emma said a little too cheerfully as she joined them at the table. "Morning," she smiled at both of them and sat down beside Henry. "Is there any coffee?"

"Not yet. Mom couldn't figure out how to turn it on," Henry replied with a roll of his eyes, one mirrored by Emma that aggravated Regina to no end. "Are we going back to the creek today?"

"After we get some breakfast and pack up the site, yeah," Emma nodded, her eyes flicking over to where Regina stood at the other end of the table. "Tell you what, why don't you get started and we'll take care of breakfast this morning, all right, kid?"

"Whatever, Ma. It won't take that long anyway."

Regina grabbed two of the cups from the pile of dishes they'd washed in the creek the night before and placed them down on the table. She gasped in surprise when Emma pulled her to sit down next to her and leaned in for a passionate kiss. Regina stiffened before pushing her back.

"He's in his tent," Emma whispered. "He's not even looking."

"That is not the poi—"

Emma kissed her once more and winked as she gave her thigh a gentle squeeze. "Don't worry, Regina. We won't tell him until you're ready," she said and she jumped up from the bench and headed over to the small fire pit. "Hey, Hen?"

"What?" Henry asked as he poked his head out of his tent.

"How many eggs do you want?"

"Four!"

"Four?"

"What?" Henry laughed as he disappeared back into his tent, muttering about being a growing boy and how he needed the protein if he expected to be able to bulk up his muscles before the end of the summer.

Regina made her and Emma a cup of instant coffee, making sure to put plenty of sugar in both to mask the horrid taste. The only reason she was drinking it was for the subtle caffeine boost it'd give her, especially given Emma had her up half the night. Just thinking of what they were doing for half the night had her lips curling into a satisfied smile and when their eyes met, she was greeted by an equally satisfied and absolutely adorable smile from Emma.

She strolled over to where Emma was poking at the fire with a stick and handed her the cup of instant coffee. There were butterflies taking flight in her stomach and she couldn't help but lean forward to peck Emma's cheek.

"What was that for?"

"Because I felt like it," Regina whispered, pecking her cheek once more before pulling back and sipping her coffee.

A short while later while they sat down to eat the bacon and eggs Emma cooked over the fire, Regina couldn't stop blushing because out of sight of their son, Emma's hand was stroking the inside of her thigh, coming to a stop at the hem of the short shorts she was wearing.

"So, seriously, you guys didn't hear those noises last night?" Henry asked with his mouth half full and upon Regina stern look, he chewed and swallowed. "It was pretty loud. Woke me up."

"I don't know what you're talking about, dear," Regina replied, fighting off the blush that grew under his intense stare. "Finish your breakfast so we can spend the day down at the creek before we go home."

"I'm serious!" Henry turned to look at Emma. "Didn't you hear it, Ma?"

Emma shook her head as she squeezed Regina's thigh gently. "Nah, I didn't hear a thing. Like I said earlier, it was probably just animals out there or something, kid. Why don't you drop it?"

"Fine, whatever," he muttered. "What did you two do last night? How'd the whole bed sharing thing turn out for you two because honestly?" Henry said as he stared them both down, "I half expected Ma to be sleeping in the truck last night."

Emma choked on her bite of food and Regina reached out to gently rub along her back. "We had wine around the fire and went to bed," Regina answered evenly. "We actually talked for a little while as well."

"I'm still surprised you didn't kick Ma out…" He trailed off and then he watched carefully as Regina continued to rub over Emma's back even though she had stopped choking on her food. "Oh…oh! I get it now."

"Get it?" Regina asked with a raised eyebrow and Henry grinned widely.

"Mission accomplished, Ma?" He asked and he held out a hand to high five her.

"Miss—hey!" Emma squealed as Regina pinched her side. "What was that for?"

"I thought we agreed we would keep this under wraps for awhile," Regina said with a glare yet couldn't fight the happy and content smile from reaching her lips.

"He knows, Regina."

"She's right, Mom. I know," Henry piped up. "Ma told me a while back that she's in love with you—wait, Ma, you _did_ tell her, right?"

"Yeah," Emma breathed out, her eyes now solely on Regina. "I did."

"And?" Henry asked impatiently. "Ma? Mom?"

"You are absolutely infuriating, Emma," Regina muttered, feeling herself drawn towards her despite being the in the very presence of their son. "You couldn't even wait one day to tell him?"

"Nope," Emma grinned, moving to straddle the bench as she slid closer to her.

Henry groaned under his breath. "Um, Moms? I'm you know I'm right here…"

"Why don't you go finish packing, Henry," Regina said, unable to take her eyes off of Emma, drawn in to the way she slowly licked over her bottom lip.

"Oh god, come on, Moms!" Henry yelped as he jumped away from the picnic bench the moment Regina pulled Emma in the last few inches and kissed her firmly. "At least wait until I'm not right here!"

"This," Regina murmured against Emma's lips, her hands falling to her hips, "is why I wanted to wait a little while before we told him anything."

"Do you think we could've made it?"

"Maybe," Regina teased, nipping at Emma's bottom lip. "Maybe if you could've tried to behave and kept your hands to yourself long enough…"

Emma laughed throatily and pressed her forehead against hers. "After last night, there is no way I am going to be able to keep my hands to myself when I am with you, Regina."

"Then I suppose," she said as her breath hitched in her chest, "we'll be sharing a bed more often than not."

"Is that right?"

"And perhaps," Regina said with a wicked glare as she leaned back just far enough to rake her eyes over the blonde, loving the way she squirmed under her gaze, "I'll teach you what happens when you don't obey orders."

"Kinky."

"You have no idea what I am capable of, darling."

"No," Emma grinned, pulling her in for another kiss. "But I can't wait to find out."


End file.
